Service news

John Fallon, son of Mike and Barbara Fallon, was recently promoted to major in the United States Marine Corps. He has been transferred from Yuma, Ariz., to Patuxent River Naval Air Station.

Army National Guard Pvt. Jeremy D. Dozier, son of Teresa Keplinger of Williamsport, graduated from the Infantryman One Station Unit Training at Fort Benning, Columbus, Ga. The training consists of Basic Infantry Training and Advanced Individual Training.

Dozier is a 2006 graduate of Heritage Academy in Hagerstown.

Air Force Airman Garrett G. Appel, son of Amy Dunnington of Cumberland, Md., and David Appel of Hagerstown, graduated from basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio.

Appel is a 2008 graduate of Fort Hill High School in Cumberland, Md.

Navy Seaman Jeffrey A. Foster, son of Kena A. Foster of Williamsport and John W. Foster of Maugansville, was recently promoted to his current rank upon graduation from recruit training at Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, Ill.

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Foster received the early promotion for outstanding performance during all phases of the training cycle.

Foster is a 2005 graduate of Williamsport High School.

John Eric "JJ" Mundale Jr. succeeded Lieutenant Natalia M. Hoy as commanding officer of Coast Guard Cutter Sturgeon in a ceremony held at Coast Guard Station Grand Isle, La., on July 2.

The change of command ceremony is a time honored naval tradition, which formally restates to the crew the continuity and authority of command. It involves the transfer of responsibility, authority and accountability from one individual to another.

Coast Guard Cutter Sturgeon is a multi-mission, coastal patrol boat based in Grand Isle. Sturgeon operates in the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River in performance of her missions, which include: search and rescue, maritime law enforcement, protection of living marine resources, marine environmental protection, and homeland security. Sturgeon has full galley services and berthing for 12 crewmembers. Sturgeon can support missions of up to five days in length and has a range of over 600 nautical miles.

Mundale is a 2003 graduate of Southern Fulton High School in Warfordsburg, Pa. Mundale graduated from the Coast Guard Academy in 2007 with a bachelor's of science degree in government. After graduation, he served a two-year tour as operations officer aboard USCGC Mobile Bay in Sturgeon Bay, Wisc.

Mundale is the son of Jack Mundale and Marilyn Pontius of Needmore, Pa., and is married to Celeste Sanders of New Albin, Iowa.